1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to technician assistant tools, and more particularly, to a tool capable of updating asset data such as asset GPS location or asset type, and a related network and method.
2. Related Art
Field technicians in the service industry receive work orders to service a variety of assets such as equipment, software, etc. The service can be any activity depending on the type of asset. For example, for equipment, service may include installation, maintenance or repair. In one example, an asset may be a part in a telecommunications system. Technicians oftentimes carry portable computing devices, i.e., tools, that are capable of providing a wide variety of functionality to the technician and the service department management. Exemplary functions are: diagnostics for the assets and time tracking software. In their most convenient form, the tools provide wireless communication with a base network.
One problem faced by users of these tools is that advantageous functions are not provided in a single device. For instance, it would be advantageous if time tracking, work order management and billing capabilities could be provided in a single tool.
Another problem often faced by users is finding the asset to be serviced. This is especially a problem where assets are geographically dispersed such as in a telecommunications system. In order to aid users in finding assets, a global positioning system (GPS) can be accessed. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 5,563,607 to Loomis et al. discloses an event tracking GPS system. Use of the GPS has also been used to track the whereabouts of users. See U.S. Pat. No. 5,844,824 to Newman et al. in which a GPS receiver is placed on a tool.
A problem that occurs when trying to locate an asset is the GPS locator for the asset has been removed, broken or otherwise made inoperable for identifying its assigned asset. Accordingly, an asset and/or its associated GPS location can be misidentified to a user. One exemplary cause of this problem is the switching of a GPS locator from one asset to another. This problem is exacerbated when the two assets are not of the same type, e.g., a printer and a desktop computer. A user sent to service an asset then wastes valuable time and resources traveling to the wrong location.
The task of finding an asset can also be hindered when other information about an asset is incorrect. For instance, when an asset is noted has being next to an object that has been moved, a user may not be able to find the asset. During a technician's workday, he/she oftentimes comes upon assets that: do not have the correct GPS locator, have been moved from their recorded location, have changed in condition such as age, or have other incorrect information recorded about them. In these instances, the user is forced to make a note of the misidentified asset or incorrect condition/information and later correct the data. The corrective measures are oftentimes overlooked or forgotten because of other burdens on the technician. As a result, time wasted searching for an asset is repeated.
In view of the foregoing, there is a need in the art for a tool capable of locating an asset and updating asset data such as GPS location and asset condition. It would also be advantageous if a tool was provided that included knowledge based software capable of combined functions such as time tracking, work order management and billing. A base network capable of managing one or more these tools would also be advantageous.